How are we able to stay in our beds sleeping instead of rolling off considering we move in our sleep?

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Yes that’s pretty much the question…been curious considering I haven’t fallen out of bed since I was like 4.

In: Biology

2 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

When you’re in REM sleep your brain basically paralyses your muscles preventing movement.

Sometimes your brain will wake up some parts of your body but not your muscles, which leads to you waking up but not being able to move, this is sleep paralysis, if your mind is still “dreaming” while this occurs then you may hallucinate and see things.

Also, the process of falling asleep is similar to the feeling of dying, so sometimes when you’re just about to fall asleep you jolt back awake and your muscles spasm, this is because your brain thinks “oh shit, they’re dying, quick try and stop it!” Instead of the usual ” *yawn* time for sleep”

Anonymous 0 Comments

The subconscious body still monitors touch – hot / cold, pressure, etc. and adjusts. We have nerve response in our extremities that’s a bit like whiskers on cats – it’s called proprioceptive touch. It’s how you know how far away from the wall you are without touching the wall, it’s how you can go around the corner without (usually) bumping into the corner, it’s part of how you can go up and down stairs without really paying total attention… it’s still active while you’re asleep. If you roll toward the edge you’ll sense that edge and adjust. When dreaming, the body paralyzes the large muscle groups so you are less likely to act out the dream which helps you not fall out or walk or shout etc…

This works best when not under the influence of medications or altering substances…